A Note About Progressive Bloggers

Just a brief note: I was in recent contact with Scott Tribe, who operates the Progressive Bloggers aggregator. It appears that, owing to financial considerations, the website is down for the count. The only thing I can suggest is to do what I have done: bookmark your favourite bloggers and check regularly for new posts.

I'd like to thank Scott for all the years he has put into the site. I know that it has made a real impact on my blog in driving traffic to Politics and its Discontents, and I shall miss it a great deal.

The Blindness Of Some

Were Bill Morneau the Conservative Minister of Finance, you can rest assured that 'progressives' would be howling for his political blood. However, because he is part of Team Trudeau, some choose to entirely ignore his massive conflict of interest and instead distort my views for their own twisted purposes. One such misrepresentation is the claim that I have said Trudeau is worse than Harper, a complete fabrication.

Were I another sort of person, the offending blogger's many libelous comments about me would result in legal action. But I am a self-assured person who can take criticism; what I steadfastly reject, however, are outright lies about me, the only reason I am making any reference at all to his overwrought posts.

I also realize now that there is likely something quite pathological in his rants and attempts at online bullying, and he is more to be pitied than rebuked. I will speak no more of him or his screeds; he is not worth more than the two minutes it took to write these opening paragraphs.

Those who are willing to examine the facts of Bill Morneau's ethical mess clearly see the damage he has done to his and his government's credibility. Tim Harper writes:

One is left with the unmistakable sense that he got caught by some enterprising reporting. What if the Globe and Mail had not found that Morneau’s substantial holdings were not in a blind trust?

One could easily believe that Morneau would have continued on his path, using a loophole in the conflict-of-interest legislation that allowed him to hold shares in the family company through an arm’s-length holding company.

When Morneau introduced Bill C-27, legislation to make it easier for federal employees to move to a targeted benefit pension, a move that would benefit Morneau Shepell, the company’s stock went up 4.8 per cent within days, Cullen says. Morneau, he said, would have made $2 million in five days from that jump. But it’s not known if Morneau was holding or selling stock at that time.

And Justin Trudeau's 'defence' of Morneau was to attack those with legitimate questions.

A day earlier, Trudeau seemed to wilt while taking 30 questions on Morneau, falling back on familiar tropes — referring to opposition questions as “mud-slinging,” accusing Conservatives of trying to sully Morneau’s good name, of “shrieking,” and playing “petty politics.”

Accusing opponents of getting down in the mud doesn’t work here. The charges against Morneau were sufficiently serious that they deserved more substantive answers.

This entire fiasco makes the Liberal government look very bad and has seriously undermined whatever agenda it has, as pointed out in today's Star editorial:

Over the last week, Morneau has retreated from the small-business tax-reform fiasco that no doubt ruined his summer. In an effort to quiet the uproar over the initiative, the government will drop or scale-back several of the proposed measures and significantly cut the small-business tax rate.

The result is that the push for reform will have had the opposite of its intended effect. The government started out with at least two important aims: reduce incentives for professionals to incorporate as a way to pay less tax on income; and increase government revenue at a time of rising debt. But in the end, Morneau will have, on balance, increased the incentives to incorporate and cost the government significant revenues.

Finally, last night's At Issue panel discussed both Morneau and the larger record of the Trudeau government thus far. It starts just after the one-minute mark:


Engagement with the political process is crucial for a healthy democracy. Willful blindness to its shortcomings is in no one's best interests.

More On The Online Community Experience

Earlier in the month, I wrote a post in which I reflected upon the affinity and sense of community I feel in the 'progressive blogosphere.' Prompted by the Internet connectivity problems I was having at the time, I wrote about how I felt a surprising sense of loss in not being able to read the people I follow, and discussed how I derive comfort and strength from the knowledge that a community of shared values exists, and that I am by no means alone in my desire for a better society.

This morning, I made a rather rare foray to church, accompanying my wife in her usual Sunday attendance at a local United Church service, prompted by the knowledge that the minister, a very progressive former Baptist, was going to talk about his recent trip to the Middle East occupied territories. While waiting for him to talk, I perused the church bulletin, and found something that I think is relevant to my deliberations about communities. The writer, Matthew Heesing, who is serving in Columbia, offered his reflections on the importance of 'presence,' something of real significance for me, I think, in the online community of which I am a part.

I reproduce the piece below, with no further comment.

April 28-Not Alone

When people ask me [why I am here in Colombia], I usually respond by saying that I'm here to build solidarity with the people and United Church partners of Colombia. But the phrase "build solidarity" seems to leave people with more questions than answers. And I understand why-it's more of an abstract concept than a tangible response ....

But now I realize that simply having someone stand with you can make all the difference in the world. And if you've ever been through an extremely rough time, or had someone close to you go through a life-shattering experience, you know what I mean. When you are going through a divorce, or have lost your job, or have had to say farewell to a loved one, or have been through any number of similar experiences ... you don't need someone with all the answers ....

There is such a power in presence. In just being with someone, whether it means standing with them, or walking with them, or sitting with them in silence, or just being with them, sharing life. Presence is powerful. When I arrived at the office of CEP ALC, my first full day in Colombia, I found a sign waiting for me in my office: "MATTHEW HEESING: Welcome to Colombia. Welcome to CEPALC. Thank you for your presence."

I don't for a moment pretend like I fully understand the complex realities of Colombia .... I can't even fluently speak the language. But, many times in life, that's not what is needed. Many times in life, what's needed even more is presence. Someone standing with you, walking with you, being with you ... helping you to know that you are not alone.

Internet Interruptus

Today is the second day I have been without direct internet access owing to some sort of problem on the Bell network. Yesterday I was in the midst of writing my daily post when it went out, and I later went down to my local library to upload it. Similarly, this morning I was at a grocery store with free Wi-fi where I checked my email and uploaded a comment on yesterday's post.

While my topic today is unlikely to offer any profound insights, I do want to write about the nature of community. Like many, I have long denigrated the notion of any real community existing in the virtual world. Facebook, for example, abounds with the trivial or egocentric (worst sleep ever last night), the treacly (if you love your mother, even if she is no longer here, share this), and the inane (click on this to see the funniest cat video ever); as well, the depth of friendships on that platform tends, in my experience, to be at the shallow end of the pool.

That is why I was a bit surprised to discover yesterday how much I missed my 'community' of fellow-bloggers whom I read regularly. Unlike when we go on vacation and have little or no internet access, during which time the suspension of contact with the larger world is a nice respite, this current unanticipated disruption of that contact has been unsettling, to say the least. While I have always felt a certain affinity with those I read and those who post comments on my blog, it wasn't until yesterday that I realized what a significant part of my life they occupy.

I suspect there are several reasons for this, one of the most compelling being that I am comforted in the knowledge that there are many people involved in blogs and Internet organizations who have both political awareness and passion, knowledge that is heartening given its frequent absence in the general population. As well, I am often led to new facts and perspectives through these people, who take me well beyond the usual newspapers and journals that I read for information.

Related, I suspect, is the same affinity that any community feels that arises from shared values. That is not to say that I read only those who reinforce my worldview and that I am closed to new ideas; rather I read those whose minds and sensibilities I respect, people who by and large do not fall into the frequent right-wing trap of name-calling, ad hominems, and shrill base emotionalism. Indeed, even when we do not agree, I respect the difference in perspectives because I respect their minds and character as revealed in their writing.

I don't see anything superficial or unreal about these virtual relationships. Although it is unlikely that I will ever meet these people 'in the flesh,' I feel a definite kinship with them. And I guess, when all is said and done, that is the most important basis of community.

A Tip of the Hat to Two Bloggers

Since joining the Progressive Bloggers' website, the daily listings of progressive posts have enhanced the depth and breadth of my understanding of social and political issues. Through their commentary and links, I have learned of things that would have eluded me entirely had I relied only on newspapers and television news.

In my humble view, there is an array of bloggers well-worth reading on a regular basis. Two of my favorites are individuals whose passionate sense of justice and outrage, whose refusal to "go gently into that good night" confirm for me that the human spirit is alive and well, as are critical thinking and the willingness to challenge authority.

If you haven't already done so, be sure to check out the latest offerings from Dawg's Blog and Orwell's Bastard.

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